The past two weeks, Lewis has been thrust into the lineup because of injuries to middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu. This week, as the Seahawks prepare to face the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday at Qwest Field, Lewis continues to practice in Tatupu's place.

Stepping in for a player as important as Tatupu is not easy. He has led the team in tackles and played in the Pro Bowl in each of his first three seasons and calls the defensive signals in the huddle.

After the laughter subsided, Marshall added, "D.D. has experience and he's smart. He doesn't get very many snaps (in practice), but he's very diligent about studying.

"That's why he's so valuable. In the salary-cap structure, guys like that don't get paid enough."

Middle? Outside? It doesn't seem to matter to Lewis. Plug him in and he just makes plays.

"I just work harder during the week to prepare myself," Lewis said. "I look at every position, so I'll be prepared to play wherever they might need me."

After Tatupu suffered a concussion in the first quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers two weeks ago, Lewis stepped in and made 11 tackles to tie his career high -- despite practicing most of the week at outside linebacker because Leroy Hill was limited with a sore knee.

After Tatupu went out with a strained groin in the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers last week, it was Lewis again, and he made nine tackles.

"It's always great to have guys like that. You only wish there were more positions."

Hill, the team's leading tackler this season, labels Lewis "the best backup in the NFL." Julian Peterson, the other outside 'backer, goes that one better.

"We have the 1's and the 2's," Peterson said, referring to the No. 1 and No. 2 defensive units. "But D.D., he's a 1A."

This starting stuff is nothing new for Lewis. After making the team as a rookie free agent in 2002, he started five games the next season because Chad Brown was injured and Anthony Simmons was being disciplined. Lewis then sat out the 2004 season because he needed shoulder surgery, but started 12 games at outside linebacker during the Seahawks' run to the Super Bowl in 2005.

That was the same year Tatupu and Hill were added in the draft, and the year before Peterson was signed in free agency.

With these three around, Lewis decided it was best to sign with the Denver Broncos in free agency in 2007. But he returned to the Seahawks in March, after backup linebackers Kevin Bentley and Niko Koutouvides also went looking for starting jobs in free agency.

Said Lewis, "I'm more a student of the game now. I have a greater sense of the game now, from looking at it from outside in."

Lewis said being released by the Broncos after five games last season actually helped him.

"It kind of humbles you," he said. "It gives you a great appreciation for the game."

Lewis was born in Bermahaven, Germany, where his father was stationed while in the Army. But he grew up in Houston and went to the University of Texas.

Even in Texas, however, he is the other D.D. Lewis. The original was Dwight Douglas Lewis, who not only played 12 seasons for the Dallas Cowboys but also is credited with the infamous line about why there is a hole in the roof at Texas Stadium -- "Because God wants to watch his favorite team."

How strange was that?

"It was crazy," the Seahawks' Lewis said. "People thought he was my dad. I was like, 'Evidently you haven't seen him.' "

HAWK TALK: Fullback Leonard Weaver (sore foot) and defensive end Patrick Kerney (sore shoulder) did not practice, putting their availability for Sunday's game in question. ... Tatupu also sat out, but he is expected to play.